Southern California -- this just in

Green bike lane in downtown L.A. sees moderate boost in traffic

May 11, 2012 | 12:47
pm

More bicyclists are taking to Spring Street following the installation of a 1.5-mile bright green lane dedicated to bikes, according to the Los Angeles County Bicycle Coalition.

The cycling advocacy group conducted counts before and after the full-color lane was painted from Cesar Chavez Avenue to 9th Street in late November and said that “findings show gains in the total number of riders after the buffered lane was installed.”

The initial counts were done on Tuesday, Nov. 1, and Saturday, Nov. 5.

On that Tuesday, 50 bicyclists used the lane between 7 and 9 a.m., 64 between 11 a.m. and 1 p.m. and 93 between 4 and 6 p.m. On that Saturday, 29 bicyclists were seen on Spring Street between 11 a.m. and 1 p.m.

The number of cyclists increased in each category during counts following the installation on Tuesday, April 24, and Saturday, April 28. The most drastic increase was on Saturday, when 108 cyclists were seen between 11 a.m. and 1 p.m.

And “the weekday gains were moderate, but still noteworthy,” according to an analysis of the count on the coalition’s website.